Is Worrying the New Normal?
Children are waking up and being plagued with fear because of the pressure that they face and the anxious feelings that they have to deal with. Parents have to drag their kids out of bed some kicking and screaming because they don’t feel like they can face another day of anxiety, fear, and pressure. NBC News posted an article this week titled, “Parents, stop worrying about your kids’ anxiety. They need some stress to learn to cope with it.” Here is the link if you want to read it: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/parents-stop-worrying-about-your-kids-anxiety-they-need-some-ncna1137266.
Dr. Madeline Levine, author, educator and clinician, notes that parents want to protect their kids from anxiety and worry and therefore become anxious when they watch their child struggle. She notes, “When we repeatedly interrupt our kids’ normal experiences to save them from experiencing any kind remote negative feeling” (Levine). When parents try to save their kids from experiencing negative feelings like worry, they are not giving their kids opportunities to develop bravery and self-confidence. The general idea of this article is that parents need to let their kids experience some anxiety and worrying because it will help benefit them in the long run. I agree that some worrying is healthy, but as Christians, the Bible has a lot to say about worry and anxiety.
It is hard to think about it this way but worrying is a result of the fall and Even though it’s easier said than done to trust the Lord, we need to actively be pursuing trusting the Lord rather than focusing on worrying about what we don’t know. When we find it hard to believe His promises and we want to give in to worry, Mark 9:24b says, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief” (NIV). In our struggles, the Holy Spirit will help us, and God honors our struggles. I find myself praying that verse a lot because I want to believe, but my sinful nature prevents me from fully believing God and his promises.
It is important to seek God through our unbelief and worrying. Jerry Bridges, author of Respectable Sins, says, “But we should never accept them as just as part of our temperament any more than we would accept adultery as part of our temperament” (70). While it is important to seek to strive to live like Jesus who lived the sinless life, we will never be completely free of this sin. Jesus faced anxiety when he was suffering on the cross as Matthew 26:39 says, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (NIV). Jesus was praying for deliverance that He would not have to suffer through what was about to happen. I think that it is fine for people to pray for deliverance from their worry and anxiety as long as they are taking it to the Lord and not in earthly things.
As teachers, we are going to be face to face with students who are living in worry and fear and they may not know the freedom that can be found in Christ. Teachers can’t be physically talking about the Gospel in public schools, but their actions and the things that they say to their students can make a huge impression on them. As teachers who are believers, we need to make sure that we are loving them like Christ has loved us even if we are teaching a public school.
What might seem like a small thing to us could be a big thing for a student. Home life carries into the classroom, kids don’t leave it at home as soon as they enter into the classroom. So, this could be a cause of worry and concern for them. Students might be worrying about a test, what if something happens or what if their peers don’t like them? As educators, we need to be constantly reminding students that they are loved. We also need to be showing them patience. We need to let them know that it is okay to worry a little, but it should not be consuming their thoughts to the point that it turns to unhealthy.
I also think that it is so important to be praying for your students even if you don’t know everything that is going on in their lives. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says to “pray without ceasing”. I think that there is more to just teaching students, but we need to be praying for our students especially as they are dealing with worry, anxiety and fear in the lives.
How can you love those around you who are struggling with worrying and anxiety? How can you help your neighbor who is living in the bondage of anxiety but doesn’t know it?
Works Cited:
Bridges, Jerry. Respectable Sins. NavPress, 2017.
Levine, Dr. Madeline. “Parents, Stop Worrying about Your Kids’ Anxiety. They Need Some Stress to Learn to Cope with It.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 17 Feb. 2020, www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/parents-stop-worrying-about-your-kids-anxiety-they-need-some-ncna1137266.
Additional Resources:
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevin-deyoung/the-cure-for-worry/
